Cordless products or devices which use rechargeable batteries are prevalent in the marketplace. Rechargeable batteries may be used in numerous devices ranging from computers to power tools. Since the devices use a plurality of battery cells, the battery cells are commonly packaged in a battery pack. The battery pack may in turn be used to power the devices when coupled thereto. Once depleted, the battery pack may be recharged using a battery charger.
Generally speaking, lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries have supplanted nickel-cadmium (NiCd), nickel-metal-hydride (NiMH), and lead-acid batteries in low-voltage electronic devices such as personal computers and cordless power tools. As compared to these conventional cell chemistries, Li-ion batteries are lighter and exhibit a larger capacity per unit volume. For this reason, Li-ion batteries are suitable for portable devices that are preferably light and intended for continuous use over a long time period.
Li-ion batteries, however, deteriorate rapidly when subjected to adverse operating conditions, such overcharging, over-discharging, or overheating. Accordingly, lithium-ion batteries typically include functionality to protect against such fault conditions. To facilitate testing of these protection functions during the assembly process, ancillary circuitry may be introduced into Li-ion battery packs. It is imperative that the protective functions and any ancillary circuitry operate properly. To this end, the ability to test these protective functions prior to placing the battery packs with a user is desirable. Also, the ability to prevent damaging the battery cells due to short circuits across battery pack terminals is desirable.
This section provides background information related to the present disclosure which is not necessarily prior art.